More Americans blame the Bush administration for the nation's economic troubles than the Obama administration, according to a new poll.

(CNN) - More than a year after President George W. Bush left office, more Americans continue to blame his administration over any other entity for the nation's economic woes, according to a new poll.

In a New York Times/CBS News survey out Friday, 31 percent of Americans said the Bush administration is at fault for the current state of the economy while only 7 percent pointed their finger at President Obama and his team.

An additional 23 percent said the fault lies with Wall Street institutions while 13 percent assign the blame to Congress. Nearly 10 percent said the blame lies with all of them.

In a CNN/Opinion Research poll released last November, the public appeared split on who should be blamed if economic conditions don't approve: 47 percent said Bush and congressional Republicans while 45 percent said Obama and congressional Democrats.

"The public still tends to blame the Republicans for current economic conditions," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "But looking forward is another matter. Americans think the GOP is responsible for getting us into this mess, but they think both parties are responsible for getting us out of it."

The poll, conducted February 5-10, interviewed 1,084 Americans and carries a sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

soundoff(299 Responses)

Jimmy James

They still blaming him for 3 trillion in debt added last year and this year? Odd. Biden meanwhile was in Iraq taking credit for how well things are there. Both him and Obama were against the surge which brought the success. In fact Biden wanted to divide the country into 3 areas. So We can imagine any success Obama will take credit for and any problems are Bush's fault.

February 12, 2010 10:52 am at 10:52 am |

Fed Up

Sorry. As soon as Obama said the "recession is over", it became HIS economy. Should have waited a while before lying to us yet again.

February 12, 2010 10:52 am at 10:52 am |

Black Viper

I would like to see the result of Polls on the same issue from states from the south only or from RED STATES. I will guarantee you 70% of them will blame OBAMA for the economy. I forgot they think Bush was a Democrat.
This shows you where Most Intelligent people live in America.

February 12, 2010 10:54 am at 10:54 am |

Rick McDaniel

Some people just don't get it. Corporate America caused this economy, through greed. Pure and simple. They haven't changed at all, either. They are still out there, doing exactly the same things they were doing before.

February 12, 2010 10:56 am at 10:56 am |

AndyBlue

Bush and the republican white party of greed destroyed so much more than our economy. Wars, Torture, Or once good name disgraced throughout the world. Not to meantion 6 billion borrowed from China. Whered the money go??? to christian groups?

The Bush Family fortune increased 10 times over through no-bid contracts given to his fathers company and all they had to invest was over FIVE THOUSAND American soldiers lives. Republicans call this smart business sense. No suprize there at all.

But then is all Americans that sat by and let this happen. The rest of the world is right to hold ALL Americans accountable. We are fat lazy uneducated idiots that are easy to manipulate through fear.

February 12, 2010 10:57 am at 10:57 am |

An 8 year old ELEPHANT dung heap, does not transform into compost in just 1 year!

As well they should, the recession had been in place for a year before the moronic shrub even uttered the word recession. Of the 8.4 million jobs lost, 6+ million were lost on the Reds watch. And Paulson then comes up with a 3 page cure called "Wallstreet Welfare" as the solution.

Kinda like a lot of Red policies, if we ignore the health care issue, then they will die and the problem will be solved.

February 12, 2010 10:57 am at 10:57 am |

A True Centrist

The reality is that the Bush administration and the Republican Congress started this mess and the Obama administration and Democrat ic Congress have made it even worse. Out of anger, we voted in an extreme leftist President and a completely liberal Congress...both of which have pushed our country over the edge and are leading us into an epic collapse. Hopefully we as voters learned our lesson and will start voting in moderates from both parties come this November.

February 12, 2010 10:57 am at 10:57 am |

Dean

Duhh It was Bush and eight years of letting all his buddies on wall street run amuck. It will take massive change and regulation to rein in the greed there.

February 12, 2010 10:57 am at 10:57 am |

Ed, Santa Fe, NM

And rightly so. The economy tanked on his watch as did the terror attacks.

Bush is still the worst president of all time.

February 12, 2010 10:57 am at 10:57 am |

Chet Dettlinger

George Bush has just about ruined this country. How any one could vote Republican after the 8 stinking years of his stolen reign is beyond me.

February 12, 2010 10:58 am at 10:58 am |

Socialism...keeping police/fire stations, roads, justice system and the military out of the hands of Capitalists

Anyone that spent beyond there means is partially to blame. Very few people didn't contribute to this in at least a small part.

As far as getting us out. I wonder how this poll would look if people bothered to look at the public record to see Republicans voting against the bill and then later on being quoted in local papers for praising the spending and taken credit for the stimulus' success. It's very ironic to see a picture of a Republican with a big smile handing out a big fake check that represents governement spending that they voted against.

February 12, 2010 10:58 am at 10:58 am |

Sadie

I couldn't agree with this finding more........it was the Bush Era that got us into this mess and yes it is now up to Obama to clean house and get it started again but it is going to take more than Obama and the Democrats, it has to be as much the Republicans responsibility to help get us out and stop their Party of NO and trying to find ways to make Obama FAIL.......many of these Republicans were in office when Bush was President and they didn't do anything to rein him in on his spending, they all went along with him and it was their responsibility to go head to head with Bush and Cheney, but they didn't so now they need to show us Americans that we are more important to them then spending all their time on running this President down and trying to get themselves elected in November......because this will come back to bite them in November if they don't get off their butts and start being more productive in helping Obama solve the problems that they and their president got us into instead of fighting with the President and running him down on everythink
g

Any third-grader knows that if you spend more money than you have, you go into debt.

Of course, the Republicans at the time said deficits didn't matter; now they all say they're terrible for the economy – typical Republican hypocrisy!

February 12, 2010 10:59 am at 10:59 am |

Sniffit

Think of it this way GOPers: it's a three day weekend and you can start it with a good hard cathartic cry.

February 12, 2010 10:59 am at 10:59 am |

Dave Harris

This will be Bush's legacy. The Herbert Hoover of the 21st Century.

February 12, 2010 11:01 am at 11:01 am |

John

The Republicans have a curious strategy. They lost power because they wrecked the economy. They are seeking to regain power by preventing the Democrats from repairing it.

February 12, 2010 11:02 am at 11:02 am |

once upon a horse

so much for it just being Obama blaming him for it..which is something I think he doesn't do as much as the far right claims.

February 12, 2010 11:02 am at 11:02 am |

Jamie

Glad we haven't developed TOTAL amnesia of America's 'Lost Decade' presided by Bush 43.

February 12, 2010 11:03 am at 11:03 am |

Some republican guy

What in tarnation???? How can the narcisstic obamabots not see who's really to blame for this economic mess??? Everything has gone to heck in a handbasket since the Oprah watching union thugs and illeagle aliens from ACORN stole the presidential election. Then they started sending all our jobs overseas!!!!!! They made us all buy subprime mortgages and raised our taxes to pay off there Wall street buddies!!!!! If John McCain and Sara Palen were elected, all of this would be fixed by now. We'd all have jobs and the deficit would be paid off!!!!!! But instead we're on the road to becoming socialists just like Canada!!!!! I don't want my grandbabies wearing Chay Guevarro t-shirts and saluting the hamer and sickel!!!!!! Wise up, real Americans. Impeach him now before its to late!!!!!! How come he can't find his birth certificate??????? Maybe the teleprompter ate it!!!!!! If you don't believe me, just go to a libtarded blue state and watch what rude drivers they are!!!!! Have a nice day!

February 12, 2010 11:04 am at 11:04 am |

Liberal wing nut

Bill Clinton signed of on the deregulation. The housing bubble would have brought things down regardless if Kerry would have one.

(Not to mention a deeply divided populace and a trampled Constitution.)

Republicans don't know diddly about running a sustainable economy.

February 12, 2010 11:04 am at 11:04 am |

Libertarian

It's obvious that Republican leadership is NO BETTER than Democratic leadership. They both spend, spend, spend! The "conservatives" need to start acting like CONSERVATIVES and stop lying to us when they campaign.

The numbers speak for themselves. Out of the top 5 States in deep financial trouble, 4 of them have had REPUBLICAN leadership for more than a decade. Arizona (McCainland) being number #3 on the worst budget list. Bush proved it on a grand scale by increasing the public debt by more than all other Presidents before him. Conservative??

February 12, 2010 11:06 am at 11:06 am |

Tram

Bush WAS responsible for getting us into this mess. Yes, the economy is cyclical. Yes, it takes years for rules enacted today to be felt in our wallets. BUT it was Bush's fiscal irresponsibility that put us into a hurt this bad. Would there have been a recession had there been someone in the White House who knew what they were doing? Probably. Would it have been this bad? Probably not. Bush was the straw that broke the camel's back.

February 12, 2010 11:07 am at 11:07 am |

Hammerer

New York Times/CBS News now that is a poll you can believe in, right?

February 12, 2010 11:07 am at 11:07 am |

Bill from GA

I guess we're not so dumb after all.
More Americans may watch Fox "News", but that mean they believe em. They're just too old for COMEDY Channel.